Optimus Prime is one of the greatest characters of all time. Every day, I would get home from school and watch Transformers on TV. And every day I would see the Decepticons come up with a plan to defeat the Autobots. And, you guessed it, every day I would see Optimus Prime play a key role in saving our planet from being conquered by Megatron.
The Transformers come from the planet Cybertron. Every Transformer has the ability to change shape into at least one other type of vehicle, weapon, or device. This helps each transformer gain power, usefulness, and marketability.
I mention the term marketability because all of the Transformers started out at toys. The producers of the Transformers often talked about the pride they felt after being able to take existing toys and place them in an excellent story. Usually, it is the other way around – characters in a TV show being turned into toys.
Unfortunately, some of the transformers experienced fundamental flaws with the way their toys and overall design interacted with the TV show. These flaws were so basic that even little kids realized something was wrong. This often motivated both children and adults to ask questions about why certain things were happening.
The Transformers first appeared on TV in 1984. Now, in 2011 there are still several questions those children and adults still want answered. At the top of the list is the famous question, “Where does Optimus Prime’s trailer go when he transforms into a robot?”
I’m now going to list several of these puzzling questions. I’m going to try and brainstorm the situation in order to solve the problem. I’m going to analyze what works and what doesn’t. Hopefully, we will have some answers that lead to a definitive conclusion by the time I’m done with this analysis.
Now, on to the list of puzzling questions:
* Where does Optimus Prime’s trailer go when he transforms?
* Megatron is the same size as Optimus Prime when the two of them are in robot mode. Optimus Prime transforms into a huge truck. But Megatron transforms into a gun small enough to fit into the hands of his fellow Decepticons. Is this reduction in size achieved with an increase of density? If so, Megatron would be a very heavy gun! Or, does this mean Megatron’s weight decreases whenever his size decreases in order to make it easy for other Transformers to aim him?
* Soundwave is the same size as Megatron and Optimus Prime. Soundwave has the ability to transform into a tape player so small that he fits in the hands of a human being such as Spike Witwicki. This strongly suggests that the density of Soundwave has not remained the same; otherwise he would be far too heavy for Spike to lift. So the question is, “How can Soundwave become small enough and light enough to fit into the hands of a human being and be lifted effortlessly?”
The next subject is really an interesting paradox that has left me wondering quite a few times. Tell me your thoughts on these subjects:
* Megatron has the ability to decrease his size to the point that his fellow Decepticons can use him as a lightweight weapon. However, Megatron apparently does not have the ability to decrease his size or weight to the point that a human being such as Spike Witwicki can use him as a lightweight weapon.
For example, after being dropped, Megatron was on the ground as a gun. As a gun, Megatron was even larger than Spike! Megatron was also so heavy that Spike could barely move him. But it appeared there was no way for Megatron to resize himself to be small enough for Spike to fire.
What I want to know is why Megatron remains heavy when he becomes smaller. And why does Megatron’s size appear to be limited? If Soundwave can become small enough and light enough for Spike to place in his hand, why does Megatron remain heavy?
* Astrotrain was a triple-changer that transformed into both a train and a space shuttle. As a robot, Astrotrain was the size of Megatron and Optimus Prime. It seemed reasonable that Astrotrain could turn into the front of a train or even a space shuttle, since Optimus Prime turns into a huge truck. But in Transformers the movie we see that Astrotrain has turned into a space shuttle so huge that he is carrying dozens of Decepticons! How in the world could Astrotrain transform into something so large? And if Astrotrain had that ability, why didn’t he just keep on getting bigger so that he could kill off all the Autobots?
* Soundwave and Blaster both transform into tape players. It’s true the Transformers crashed on our planet over four-million years ago, but were they really that far behind us in that area of technology?
I’m now going to investigate some hypotheses and theories about why these paradoxes seem to exist. Hopefully, I will be able to come up with some answers now that the questions have been clearly asked. If you have some ideas, please feel free to write about them here.
First, we know that the trailer is a separate part of Optimus Prime. We also know that he does have the ability to walk into the trailer and use it as a form of battle station; although, we only saw this happen a very small number of times. My only theory right now has to do with the fact that the original Transformers TV show was broadcast in a 4:3 ratio. Perhaps if the show had been broadcast in a widescreen format we would have seen that trailer transformed into a battle station next to prime all along in every episode!
Second, we know that several transformers have the ability to change their size when they transform. In Transformers: The Movie, Astrotrain told Starscream that it was necessary to “Jettison some weight” or else they would never make it back to Cybertron. This seems to indicate there are limits on how far a transformer can modify its size.
Third, Soundwave was able to become so small and so lightweight that a human being could place him in his hand for the purpose of deception. Perhaps the reason why Megatron appeared unable to do so was because he never had a desire to allow a human to use him as a weapon. The fact that Spike was able to lift Megatron at all in his reduced size suggests there is a weight reduction ratio that exits when a transformer changes its size. Although Megatron’s smaller size was still heavy to Spike, Megatron probably was still lightweight to other Transformers firing him such as Starscream or Skywarp.
The one problem that isn’t answered by this has to do with the scientific way Soundwave is able to become so incredibly lightweight. We seem to have proven that a mathematical ratio of size and weight exists when a transformer changes its size. However, we sill haven’t proven the way that this occurs. You are welcome to share your thoughts on this issue.
Does the mass of the transformer decrease in some way when size and weight are changed? If so, are dimensions other than space and time involved? Perhaps Soundwave speeds his cassette tapes faster than the speed of light in a circular motion (increasing mass and gravity), contains the reaction with his powerful eject button, and transfers some weight to another dimension – similar to what some scientists believe occurs in a black hole.
But if that is the case, how would Megatron and Astrotrain do the same? Megatron’s specifications on his box say that his technology is based on anti-matter, so this may be possible. And perhaps Astrotrain’s rocket technology is based on a nuclear source of energy, which would explain why he needs to be a triple changer in the form of a train. You are welcome to share your thoughts on this issue.
Last but certainly not least is why Soundwave and Blaster would need audiocassettes over four-million years ago on the planet Cybertron. I think the main thing we need to remember is that Teletraan 1 changed most of the Transformers in at least some way in order to make them compatible with the culture that existed on our planet in 1984. In all likelihood, Soundwave and Blaster probably did not use audiocassettes on Cyberton.
Well, I hope this article has helped you find the answers to some of the questions that all of us have wondered about for a long time. If I did help you find the answers you were looking for or if you found this article fun to read, please make a donation to this website. This website is not free to run, and I do have epilepsy. Any extra income I can get is appreciated.
Sincerely,
Michael Zoran
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